And You Call This Hell
by Mrs. Evil Badnasty
Summary: Occurs after the whole series. Faye dies committing a crime for which she will be eternally damned. How much will Spike sacrifice to save her soul? Please R&R!!! Finished!!!
1. Death

Disclaimer: I don't own it.

Julia rested her head against Spike's chest as they looked in the small mirror that was their only connection to the mortal world. He had insisted that they use it to keep an eye on his former comrades.

Right now, they were watching Faye trudge down the hall of her new home on Ganymede and plop herself on the pink, frilly comforter she had chosen to put on her bed. Her eyes still showed the sadness she had harbored inside since Spike's death, and her body language clearly showed that it would last for a lot longer. In the two years since then, she had gotten much better, but immediately following the incident..she didn't know how she would survive. She was the main reason Spike wanted the mirror.

Heaven wasn't at ALL what he and Julia had expected it would be. Rather than the picture-perfect paradise they had learned about throughout life, it was simply an abode for the souls of the deceased, much like the universe of the mortals had been. They still felt pain, they still felt loss, and they still felt sadness.

Spike felt an incredible sense of guilt well up in him as he saw Faye reach over to her closet and slide open the door, revealing a small refrigerator, in which she kept all her alcoholic drinks.

"Dammit Faye, stop it," he whispered as he saw her look around self-consciously, then move it back. Removing a small square from the carpet, she pulled out a large bottle of painkillers and immediately downed half of them. This had become her usual habit.whenever she was feeling the aftereffects of Spike's demise (which was quite often even still), she would drug herself. Only he and Julia knew about this; Jet had no idea, even though he lived with her.

Julia looked at Spike, her eyes searching for something unseen in his expression, something only she would have been able to decipher. "Why are you so concerned about her, Spike?" she asked him.

"Why the hell do you think? I lived with her for the last portion of my life, of course I'm going to be concerned about her!" he snapped, mentally unawar of who he was talking to.

Julia pulled away from him, her eyes still on his, which were shining with unshed tears. "You lived with me for much longer, and yet now the only person on your mind is Faye!" she protested.

Loud bangs suddenly emitted from the small mirror that neither of them had been watching. Spike whipped around to see, to his horror, Faye, tears streaming down her face, shooting anyone in her way as she raced down the street to the plaza where the new cathedral was being built. Standing in front of the site, she looked up at the sky and her expression grew angry.

"Where are you going? What are going to do there? Didn't you say you weren't going there to die? DIDN'T YOU? And look what you ended up doing! You DIED!" she screamed at the cloudy heavens. "I'm not going to forgive you for that one, Spike Spiegel!"

Spike stared at her, his heart racing, his mind going out of control. "Don't do anything stupid, Faye. Calm down," he told her, knowing she couldn't hear him.

Faye lost control of herself, and began firing random shots around her, killing innocent people in her madness. "DAMN YOU, SPIKE!" she shouted with each bullet that hit a fellow human.

He backed away from the mirror. "This can't be happening," he told himself over and over again. "She can't be doing thisshe just can't"

But she was. The police who patrolled the streets during the daytime already surrounded the area and were telling her to put her weapon down lest they fire at her.

When she refused to stop, they opened fire. Faye's body whipped around as the bullets entered it, and her last word was, "Damn"

"FAYE!" Spike shouted, causing Julia to rush in to see what was wrong.

"What happened?!" she asked quickly.

He simply pointed to the glass, where Faye's bloody, mangled body lay crumpled in the middle of the street.

"OhI seeshe finally cracked, huh?"

He said nothing, only got up and walked out of the room with the mirror, his eyes glued to the horrific scene it showed.

The street blurred, and Spike watched, puzzled, as a dark red hall appeared in the glass. He sat down on the ground and stared at the swirling walls of the seemingly endless tunnel.

His eyes widened as he saw Faye walking down it, looking around and wondering where the hell she was. She kept her hand on the side, as if it was guiding her down to wherever this mysterious passage led to.

As she continued walking, the end of the hall shifted and formed a large doorframe, and a shadowy figure stood there.

Spike's eyes widened as he realized who it was

A/N: Should I continue? No flames recommendedI will only use them to barbecue the reviewer


	2. Realization

Disclaimer: Didn't I say I don't own it?

"Hello, Miss Valentine," said a cold, harsh voice that chilled Spike to the bone. A wisp of red smoke sneaked out from behind the shadow as Faye's eyes widened.

"Vicious" she whispered, horrified. "You"

He chuckled evilly. "In amanner of speaking" As he stepped out of the shadows, Spike noticed a reddish tint to his skin pigment, which was usually pale white. Walking up to Faye, he extended his arms in a gesture of mock-welcome. "So glad you could finally make it."

She backed away, looking around her cautiously. "Wheream I?" she asked him.

He spread his arms wider and indicated the surroundings. "This is the place where you go after you die! Welcome to my home, sweetheart."

__

That is NOT Vicious, thought Spike. _Vicious wouldn't talk like that So who IS that?_

Apparently, Faye was thinking the exact same thing, because she asked him, "Okay, just who the hell are you? I know you're not the real Vicious."

"What makes you think that?" he asked her, crossing his arms.

She backed away slowly. "For one thing, Vicious would probably be all over me by nowand you're keeping your distance."

He thought about this for a moment. "I could be all over you in the blink of an eye if you wanted me to."

"N-no," she replied hastily. "That's quite all right. For another thing, you sound likeI dunnoyou just don't sound like Vicious. You don't talk at ALL like he does."

"Well, I tried!" Obviously giving up, he summoned crimson-colored smoke that rose up from the ground and enveloped him. When it evaporated, Vicious was no longer standing there. In his place was

"Oh, my God" Spike whispered. "That can't becan it?"

Pale white skin, flaming red hair, pointed teeth, evil red eyesthere was no mistaking him. This was the devil. However, that didn't register to either of them; they were too busy being afraid of the fact that he WAS the devil to even realize what was going on at that moment. "Nice to meet you, Faye Valentine."

Faye's eyes widened and she turned to run away.

"There's nowhere you can goI'm afraid you're stuck herewith me."

It was then that both Spike and Faye finally realizedshe was in Hell. Faye stopped abruptly.

Spike nearly dropped the mirror. "Oh my God, Faye" he whispered, shocked yet not at the same time. He sighed. "Always knew you'd come to a bad end."

__

This canNOT be happening to me Faye thought disbelievingly. _I mean, sure I was bad, but I wasn't bad enough to earn myself an eternity in _Hell_! Vicious is probably down here, and I was NOTHING like him!_

"Oh, you were a lot like him," the devil said to her, raising an eyebrow. "You both killed many innocent people, you were both sinnersboth sluts."

Spike punched the floor angrily. "How DARE you compare her to someone like Vicious?" he snarled at the piece of glass he was holding.

"How DARE you compare me to Vicious?!" Faye hissed.

Spike smiled a bit. She was thinking the exact same way he was, and even though that scared him a bit, it amused him as well.

"I'm the devil," the incarnation of evil said to Faye. "I can do whatever the hell I please, whenever the hell I please. And I'm going to have fun doing whatever the hell I please with you, Miss Valentine. It's not every day a looker like you enters my place."

Faye's face contorted into a look that was a mix between horror, terror, and defiance.

He advanced on her, causing Spike's whole body to tense in anticipation. "Don't touch her, you bastard" he growled under his breath, teeth clenched tightly.

To his complete surprise, the devil cocked his head. "Do I hear threats from Heaven?" he asked the air, looking straight at Spike through the mirror. "Don't try to interfere with me, Spike Spiegel. I know you're out there."

Faye gasped. "Spike!" she called desperately. "Spike, help me!"

Spike was too busy staring at the mirror as if it had suddenly grown arms to hear her. "You can see me?" he asked, suddenly terrified.

"Of course I can see you. You don't think you'd be given a one-sided looking glass, do you? This is the afterlife! Nothing's exactly the way you think it is!" the devil replied, laughing evilly. "I can do more than see you, though" He made a motion with his hand, and Spike suddenly found himself without breath. Dropping the mirror and lying down flat, he pounded the ground, needing air badly.

The devil made another gesture, and Spike gasped, taking in oxygen rapidly. "What the hell?"

"Like I said, don't interfere."

Faye was frightened beyond belief, because she couldn't see anything that was going onshe could only guess. "Spike! Are you all right? SPIKE!!!"

"Oh, he's fine," the devil said flippantly. "By the way, since you're going to be staying with me for a while, you can call me Gothring. That's the name my girlfriends all call me by."

Faye spat on the ground. "How about I call you Asshole? That suits you much better."

He frowned, then disappeared and materialized inches from her face. He kissed her deeply, and she responded by slapping him across the face. He returned the slap, and she was thrown three feet back.

She lay there on the ground, nearly unconscious from the impact. "You had better get used to doing what I tell you, Faye Valentine. Otherwise, I might get angry with you, and you don't want that."

She said nothing, only lay there.

Spike, who had been watching all this, got up resolutely and grabbed a coat that was hanging near the doorway. "I'm leaving, Julia," he called. "I'll be back."

"Where are you going?" she asked, coming to the doorway between the storage room and the room Spike was in.

"To save a friend," he replied, walking out the door.

"You'd better come back" she said. "If you end up spending eternity in Hell because you were trying to save Faye I'll kill youagain."

He smirked. "Don't worry. I'll come back." He strolled over to her and planted an affectionate kiss on her lips, then walked out.

"He'll never come back" Julia whispered to herself. "I'll never see him again"

Spike walked two miles to the large, elegant-looking cathedral where St. Peter took his breaks. Shoving the guards out of the way, he walked in and found Peter sipping tea in an elaborately-furnished room on the second floor.

"What are you doing here?" Peter asked, a little startled.

"I'm here for directions," Spike replied simply.

"Really?" He sat back. "To where?"

"Hell."

A/N: Do you want a third chapter or should I leave it here? =P Oh, and I mean no religious offense by my portrayals of Heaven and Hell. I myself am a Christian, but I wanted to make them very abstract in this story. (Basically because I wanted the protagonists to go to Heaven and the antagonists to go to Hell, and Spike wasn't exactly a perfect guy, if you know what I mean.)


	3. Risks

Disclaimer: I still don't own it.

A/N: Yes, I know Julia is a littlewell, maybe more than a littleOOC, but it's crucial to the plot, so cry a river, build a bridge, and get over it. =P

St. Peter adjusted his glasses and set his tea down on the coffee table in front of him. Then he stood up and looked Spiike straight in the face, his sea-green eyes stern. "Now why in heaven's name do you want directions to Hell?" he asked.

Spike looked down sideways. "I need to take care of something"

"Ah," Peter said, understanding him perfectly. "I see." He sat back down on the couch. "Well, son, I'm afraid you've come here for nothing, because I'm not permitted to direct you to the land of sin. Plus, once a soul has entered Heaven, Hell will be a land of pure physical torture. The air will feel like needles in your lungs, the ground will burn and blister your feet through your shoes, the sun will scorch your eyes and blind you. It's not a pleasant place, which is why the Almighty has forbidden me to show anywone except those who deserve it the way."

Spike thought about this, then was startled as he heard himself say, "I don't care. Tell me how to get there."

"Spike, what are you doin?" Julia whispered into the mirror. "You'll end up killing yourself"

St. Peter stood back up again and walked over to a large marble fireplace. Leaning against the top, he stood pensively for a moment. Finally, he looked up at Spike and said, "No. I can't it. I'm sorry."

Spike punched the wall angrily. "Dammit, Peter! If you knew who I was going afterIf you actually KNEW her"

Peter flinched slightly at Spike's harsh language, then sighed. "Who was she?"

Spike sighed. "She wasFaye. God, how can you describe Faye?" He then proceeded to attempt an evaluation of who Faye used to be, but only ended up stuttering aimlessly.

The guardian of Heaven's gates looked at Spike's face, searching for any trace of emotion. He smiled when he found the feeling he was looking for, and interrupted Spike in his rambling description of Faye. "You don't have to tell me any more. I'll tell you how to get there."

Spike's eyes lit up. "Really? Great!"

Peter held up a finger. "However, by going there, you will be taking a terrible risk."

"What do you mean?" Spike asked warily.

"I mean that there is a great possibility that you will be unable to return. Once you cross the border between Heaven and Hell, your soul will begin to rot, and if it rots completely, you will belong to the ruler of Hell forever."

Julia nearly dropped the mirror as she heard this. Her heart raced, and she prayed that Spike would back down at this point.

He said nothing, only sat down on Peter's couch, putting his elbows on his knees and folding his hands. He sighed. "DammitI told Jet that one of the things I hate most is women, so why am I spending both my life AND my afterlife chasing after them?" He looked at St. Peter, who stared back placidly. "I love Julia more than anything, butI'm afraid I might be starting to love Faye, too."

Julia scowled. _I KNEW it_ she thought. _He's going after her because he loves her_

Not even bothering to ask who Julia was, St. Peter sat down next to Spike and patted him on the back. "You know, you're the first person who's ever actually talked to me like this. Everyone else has just basically idol-worshiped me because I'm 'The Great St. Peter Whom Everyone Must Be Afraid Of'. You know what I'm talking about?"

Spike didn't, but he nodded anyway. "I don't care what the risk is, Pete."

"Pete? Now THAT'S a new one," Peter said, chuckling. "You really want to know how to get there?"

"Yes. Yes, I do." He looked at the Head of the Saints earnestly and said, "I only hope Julia can't see what's going on here through that mirror God gave us or she would seriously want to kick my ass right now."

Peter laughed. "Well, my friend, I'm afraid she can choose to follow anyone she wants to with that thing, so she's probably watching you right now."

Spike's eyes widened. "Oooooh, shit"

"Yeah, 'ooooh shit' is right" Julia said tensely. "You're seriously gonna get it when you get home." Her eyes softened. "IF you get home"

Spike smacked himself in the forehead. "Julia's gonna KILL me"

"Well, do you want to know the way or not?" Peter asked, crossing his arms in mock impatience.

The ex-bounty hunter snapped out of his self-pity phase and shook his head. "Yeah."

"All right then." He then proceeded to give Spike very detailed instructions on how to get there.

"Uh, could you like write these down or something?" Spike asked, scratching the back of his head.

"Whyever so?"

"Uh, because you lost me after you said 'Go down Lollipop Road'."

"Oh" He pulled out a thick piece of parchment, tapped it, and a map appeared on it. "Here, this might help."

"YeahYeah it just might," Spike said sarcastically.

Peter used his finger to make a black line that went from a small dot labeled "Peter's Cathedral" to a dark red line that was labeled "Border".

Spike got up and twisted around to crack his back. "OK, well, I might as well go now. Thanks for the help, Pete."

"You're welcome."

Spike started to walk out, when Peter stopped him.

"Hey, Spike?" he asked, grabbing the other man's arm gently.

"Huh?"

"Be careful, okay? Make it back, because I don't usually have anyone who'll talk to me like an equal up here."

Spike grinned. "Don't worry. I'll make it. I've got Julia waiting to kick my ass, I have to."

Julia smiled, but it was an empty smile. Inside, her mind was racing, jumping to conclusions, hating the name Faye Valentine. _Something must be done about themI don't want them together._


	4. Crossing Over

Disclaimer: Why do I feel like I'm repeating myself? I do not now, nor do I ever plan to, own Cowboy Bebop, Heaven, Hell, St. Peter, God, the Devil, or any such stuff. Customer Service belongs to the Customer Service people.

Spike stood in the middle of nowhere, staring at the invisible, yet very distinct line that marked the end of Heaven and the beginnig of Hell. The grassy field he was standing in quite abruptly transformed into a black, concrete-seeming void of a pasture after a certain point.

He surveyed his surroundings, looking back and seeing the sudden end to the road he had been traveling and scanning the greenery that encircled him. Then, he noticed something that hadn't been there before: a large iron door.

He walked up to it and circled it slowly. There were no walls around it, and nothing behind it. "Hmmm" he said, scratching his head, confused. Then he sighed. "The more I see of Heaven, the more it scares me," he said to himself. Then he shrugged. "Oh well. I guess the best way to figure out just what the hell this thing is is to open it."

Grabbing the large, intricately-patterned door handle, he began to tug on it, finding that it was extremely heavy. Suddenly, he jumped back, startled, as St. Peter's voice boomed, "DON'T OPEN THAT DOOR!!!"

Spike, who was now sprawled on his back in the grass, sat up and held his head. "Holy shit, Pete, don't scare me like that!" He shook his head to rid himself of the dizziness that had resulted from his collision with the ground. "You nearly gave me a heart attack!"

There was no trace of amusement in Peter's voice as he said sternly, "You must never again attempt to open that door. Do you hear me? Never."

"What is it? And why not?" Spike asked the air.

"That is the door that leads to the accurséd Realm of the Havenless Souls. It is the dwelling place for the Redead: souls that have been killed again even in the afterlives," the saint explained monotonously.

"What do those, uh, souls do?"

"Do you know that legend that Hades is simply a large room with a multitude of spirits revolving endlessly in circles?"

"Yeah, I think so" Spike was feeling very uneasy at this point.

"Well, that's what the Redead are condemned to do for eternity."

"Oh, so they just go around in circles forever," Spike said stupidly.

"Uh, yeah, I guess so," Peter said, obviously taken aback by Spike's amazing grasp of the blatantly obvious.

"Well, what happens if I open that door?"

The sounds of uncomfortable shifting came from the heavens. "Well, I don't exactly knowI've never tried it and I've never been allowed to witness the souls entering it. I'm just the Customer Service guy. I tell people where to go and how to get there."

Spike's shoulders slumped. "Oh, some help YOU are" he said sarcastically.

"Hey, I help!" Peter said indignantly, a trace of hurt feelings in his voice. "At least I was able to stop you from possibly being sucked in and forced to become an aimless wraith until God-knows-when. Or, rather, God-doesn't-know-when."

"God-doesn't-know-when?"

"I asked him once how long forever will last, and he said he didn't know," Peter said, shrugging.

"Oh" _And just when I think I've met ONE sane person in this world_ he thought sullenly.

"Just don't open the door, okay?"

"All right. You can go back to your church thingy now."

St. Peter suddenly got huffy. "It's a _cathedral_.. A _cathedral_. Got it?" Then he disappeared as clearly as if Spike had seen him walk out a door.

"Some people are so touchy" Spike said resignedly as he turned back to face the border.

Julia, who was still watching Spike, had been anxiously anticipating the moment when he would cross over to Hell. She still remembered what Peter had said would happen to him physically once he entered the land of the sinful dead. "Spikebe careful" she whispered.

"I'll be careful, Julia Don't worry," Spike said to the air, catching her completely off guard.

"You canhear me?" she asked, startled. He didn't respond. She sighed. _He just knows me too well_

"Well, here goes nothing," he said, then crossed the line. As soon as his foot touched the other side, he screamed. Invisible knives stabbed at him and tore him to pieces. The hot air filled his lungs with fire. As he fell to his knees and flung his hands out to support himself, they blistered before his eyes, which he had to shut quickly because of the scorching heat that rushed into them.

"SPIKE!" Julia screamed, her eyes watering as she watched her love writhe in agony. "Spike, come back! Don't go any further!"

He tried to get up and put his forearm in front of his eyes. Staggering back and forth, he walked forward, gasping for air and feeling his feet blister through his shoes. It was exactly like what St. Peter had told him would happen.

Then, he fell forward, and as he started to lose consciousness, he whispered to himself, "Dammit, I didn't make it to Faye" Then, he fell to the floor, seemingly lifeless.

"SPIKE!!!" Julia screamed again, letting the agony she felt show in her words. "Get up, Spike! Please, get up! Don't be dead, please!" Then, she realized what his last word had been

"Faye" she said, murder defining her every implication. "I'll kill you for this"

A/N: I'm still thinking about whether or not to post the next chapter. Should I? =P Please R/R, and I still say that all flamers will be barbecued.


	5. I Found You

Disclaimer: I have a question for you. Should these things be required at the beginning of every chapter if you're simply saying the same thing over and over again? ..I didn't think so. But I'll say this anyway: I don't own Cowboy Bebop.

A blurred image of a rooma woman's face, even in sleep showing lines of worryhis body feeling the aftereffects of injuryhe had been here beforehe had been in this situation before Spike sat up awkwardly, his stomach muscles contracting painfully. He held up a hand to his forehead, then stopped it in midjourney as he saw a bandage wrapped clumsily around his palm. His eyes traveled to his other hand and to his feet, where he noticed similar wrappings.

He looked at Faye, who was sitting down with her head rested on her arms on the bed, fast asleep, and chuckled quietly to himself. Then he stopped, as if something had just come to mind. Why was he there? Where was Jet? Where was Ed?

It was then that he thought to look around and see the room he was in. He hadn't been in this room before

Faye stirred, and lifted her head. "Mmm Spike?" she groaned sleepily.

"Yeah." He looked at her and smiled a bit. "Are you awake?"

She sat up and stretched. "No, I'm just sleeptalking, Spike. And I'm looking straight at you as I'm doing so." With that, she gave Spike a look that clearly said, "Must you ask such stupid questions?" Standing up and moving her back around, she asked him, "Are you all right? I mean, when I found you, you werealmost deadagain."

Spike looked at her, puzzled. "When youfound me? What do you mean found me?"

Faye turned to face him, her look shocked. "You don't remember?" she asked incredulously.

"Remember what? Hey, where're Jet and Ed? And that mutt?"

She turned away from him, her eyes shining. "He doesn't remember," she told herself, frustrated. "He DOESN'T reMEMber!" She turned back around and faced him. "HE DOESN'T REMEMBER THAT HE'S DEAD!"

Spike's eyes widened. "Dead? What are you talking about? I'm not--" He stopped as it all came flooding back. Vicious had killed him, he had livedsomething like thatwith Julia, Faye had died, and gone to "Oh, my God. Am I in?"

Faye nodded. "Yes. You idiot. You're not supposed to come after me! I mean, when Vicious was holding me hostage, that was one thing. When the DEVIL is holding me hostage, on the other hand"

"They're basically the same person, so shut up. I couldn't let you stay here with that pervert devil guy," he said, trying to get up and forgetting the fact that his feet were severely burned and bandaged. As his weight was placed on one of them, he yelped and sat back down with a thump.

She chuckled. "You idiot"

"Yeah, you said that before." He looked around. "Is there any way I'll be able to get up from this bed? If you can even call it that. It feels like I'm sitting on a kitchen counter."

Faye sighed. "Well, I'm not letting you do ANYTHING until you heal a little more. So lay back down and catch some more Z's."

"If I catch any more, there won't be enough to have one in the alphabet, so let me get up!" he protested.

She crossed her arms. "You can go ahead and try, but I doubt you'll be able to. Your feet look like a red bathmat. They're so bumpy they remind me ofWell, they remind me of something, I just can't think of anything right now." She frowned at Spike. "You know, you really had me worried, so don't go pulling stunts like that ever again, you hear me?" She shook her index finger at him to emphasize her point.

He could help but smile, and that smile soon turned into a jolly laugh. "You crack me up, Faye Valentine," he said, chuckling.

She wrinkled her nose and stuck her tongue out at him, but eventually joined him in his laughter. Then she sat down next to him and sighed. "So I guess it's just you and me, huh?"

He smirked. "Well, unless your new boyfriend's around here somewhere."

She whipped her head around sharply to face him. "My new what?"

"Your new boyfriend. That tall, dark, RED guy I saw you with in my mirror," he said wryly, poking fun at her the way he loved to do.

__

He's FLIRTING with her! Julia thought, getting annoyed with Spike's apparent comfort with the situation he and Faye were in.

"Hmph!" Faye sniffed, crossing her arms and turning away. "What's it to you if he WAS my boyfriend? Which he isn't But anyway, he's the ruler of a whole afterworld! Who wouldn't want a lover with that kind of powerand MONEY!"

Spike shook his head and looked down. "Oh, Faye, you know they don't have money in Hell!"

Her eyes widened. "They DON'T??? OH HOW WILL I EVER SURVIVE DOWN HERE???"

He rolled his eyes. "You won't. That's why I came to get you, you moron. That is, unless you don't want to leave your little Devie-poo."

Faye's eyes narrowed as she glared at Spike. "Well, what if I don't?"

He shrugged. "Then I'll just have to leave you here and go back to Heaven and Julia."

She looked at him skeptically. "Would you really do that to me?" she asked out of curiosity.

He looked at her, about to respond with one of his witty snapbacks, but saw the sudden concern in her eyes. Did she really think he would go off and leave her in a place like this? Did she think so low of him that he would leave her in Hell while he relaxed up in Heaven? His eyebrows furrowed as he got a funny feeling in his stomach.

"Are you going to answer my question or are you just going to sit there staring at me?" she snapped, crossing her arms again.

He shook his head and came back to reality. "I, uhI forgot what I was going to say"

"URGH!!!" she groaned in frustration. "You really would do that, wouldn't you? You'd leave me here if I told you I was happy! Well, thanks a lot, Spike Spiegel, you've just made my eternity!"

He tried to get up, forgetting about his injuries, but yelped and fell back down as white-hot pain seared up his legs. "Dammit, Faye!" he yelled as his rear end slammed onto the edge of the bed, sending him tumbling painfully to the ground.

"Oh, sure, blame it on me!" she said sarcastically, looking at the ceiling. Then she looked back at him, lying helpless on the floor, heaved an exasperated sigh, and knelt down to help him. "Are you okay?"

"I will be. And I didn't yell because I was blaming you for me falling down. I was yelling because I can't believe you hold such a low opinion of me. I may not be a knight in shining armor, but I do have a little self-respect. And no man who leaves a woman friend of his burning in Hell can have any respect for himself." He looked at her, and was surprised to see a somewhat shocked expression on her face.

"Do you mean that or are you just telling me that so I'll help you back up?" she asked.

"I mean it, Faye. Don't insult me like that again."

Faye looked down sullenly. Spike couldn't tell if her action was out of guilt or resentment. "Sorry," she said, her tone proving she meant exactly the opposite.

"Faye, look at me," he ordered. She looked up, and he nearly fell over with surprise as he saw crystal tears forming on the edges of her eyes.

"What?" she asked.

"Ithat is" Without warning, he leaned forward and kissed her full on the lips. Her eyes widened suddenly, then floated shut as she returned his kiss. His bandaged hands crept around her waist and pressed themselves against her tensed back as she snaked her arms up around his bare neck.

When the kiss was broken, Faye looked at Spike, nearly breathless. "Two questions. One, where did you learn to kiss like that, and two, what WAS that?"

Spike looked to the side. "One, I don't know, and two, I don't know." He shrugged. "I guess there's more to you than there seems."

"Spike do you?" She trailed off.

"Yes. Yes, I believe I do."

"Yes. I do, too."

They kissed each other again, letting each others cool breath chill them to the bone in the sweltering heat of Hell.

Julia nearly dropped the mirror, and a tremendous anger built up inside her.

__

YesYes that's it. He's cheating on you, Julia. He's not going to come back to you because he's going to stay there with Faye, a voice in her head told her, causing her anger to turn to rage, then fury, then full-out ire.

She screamed at the top of her lungs in anger and threw the mirror against the wall, shattering it. Her eyes elongated and gained a reddish tint as a snakelike tongue flicked out of her mouth. Her back straightened as sharp plates grew out of her shoulders, ripping her shirt. Her fingernails turned to claws, her back sprouted small devilish wings. Her hair whipped around her face and settled in a rather scraggly getup around her face.

She immediately tore out of the house, breaking everything in her way. The rampage had begun, and the two people who had uncovered a newfound love for each other sat oblivious to everything.

DarnI wasn't able to make it a cliffhanger =P. Those are fun. Oh well, do you want the next chapter anyway?


	6. Love Is My Only Defense

Disclaimer: (sigh) Must I go through this in EVERY chapter? I don't own Cowboy Bebop.

A/N: I know this chapter is a little.er maybe more so. short, but I kinda had a brain fart pertaining to how I was going to make it longer

Spike kissed Faye again sweetly, then let his lips travel to her jawbone, then her neck, then her collarbone. She moaned slightly as she turned her head the other way. He lay her down on the bed, still kissing her. As he began to undo the single button that held her shirt closed, a mass of smoke filled the room.

The two romantics rolled away from each other, both coughing and sputtering.

As the smoke cleared, the distinct silhouette of the devil appeared, illuminated by the light of the pale red moon that shone through an open window.

Faye gasped and backed up all the way to the wall. Spike stood up quickly, ignoring the white-hot pain that shot up his aching legs and feet. "What the hell are you doing here, you bastard?!" he spat.

The devil shrugged. "This whole domain is under my rule. I would suppose that gives me the privilege of going wherever I want, doesn't it?" He sighed, then looked at Spike, and said with a business-like tone, "But anyway, that doesn't really matter, does it? Because YOU are trespassing on my land and trying to steal my property."

"I'm NOT your PROPERTY!" Faye exclaimed angrily.

The Evil One then turned his attention to the beautiful woman sitting with her back to the wall before him. "And as for YOU, my little Valentine, you were just about to go and do something that would have made me very unhappy, very unhappy indeed. And you wouldn't want that, now would you?"

"I don't give a damn what makes you happy or not. I don't give a damn about you at all, so just leave me alone!" she yelled.

He rubbed his chin with a long, black-nailed finger. "Well, if you don't give a damn about me, you probably DO give a damn about this Spike Spiegel fellow, don't you?" He grinned at Spike evilly.

Faye stood up angrily. "You touch a hair on his body and I'll—"

"You'll what?" Lucifer laughed, the same bone-chilling laugh he had laughed before. Then, quite suddenly, his face turned to a hellishly furious glare. Lifting a hand and spreading his fingers so that his palm was facing Spike, he furrowed his eyebrows and sent Spike flying backwards into the wall of the room.

"You BASTARD!!!" Faye screamed irately as she rushed blindly at her lover's attacker. She was unable to reach him, however, for he simply chuckled and threw her against the wall as well. While Spike hit the wall and slid painfully to the floor, barely conscious from the horrible pain the filled his entire body as he hit the end of the room, Faye stuck to the wall as if held there by flypaper. Her pursuer approached her and snapped, and her body assumed a spread-eagle position, allowing only her head to move.

"Get." Spike tried to say, but only succeeded in causing himself more pain.

Faye turned her head as the devil approached her and ran his tongue along the side of her face. Then he proceeded to plant small kisses down her neck, her chest, her stomach. A greedy look sprung into his eyes as he came to the top of her shorts. He reached his hand out to rip them off of her, when he was suddenly thrown to the other side of the room by a mysterious force. He fell to the floor, out cold.

Finding herself free of the magical bind, Faye dropped from the wall and ran over to where Spike was. He staggered to his feet and grabbed her hand. "C'mon," he said weakly. "We gotta get outta here before he comes to."

Ignoring his pain, he pulled her out of the small cabin they had been in and began running away blindly. Fortunately, he had been running in the right direction, because they soon arrived at the border between Heaven and Hell.

Crossing it, Spike collapsed, panting and in terrible pain.

"Well, Spike, it's about time," a familiar voice with a metallic undertone to it said. Spike looked up to see Julia's demonic form step out from behind the door that led to the Realm of Havenless Souls.

A/N: I am going to TRY as hard as I can to get the next chapter up ASAP.


	7. I Can Only Offer Myself

Disclaimer: I don't own CBBB or any of its characters.  I don't own God, or Heaven, or Hell, or the Devil, or anything of that nature.

A/N: I am SO sorry I haven't updated in so long. On top of groundation and writer's bloc, I have a lot of extracurricular activities going on……Sorry!!!

Spike stared in disbelief at the apparition before him, at the twisted, mutated form of the woman he once loved standing there with a look of pure hatred in her eyes.

Faye rushed forward.  "Get out of here, Spike.  I have some issues to settle with this one," she said to him calmly, though her fury leaked out through her tone.

He couldn't move, for fear that he might wake up and things would be even worse than they were at this moment.  "Julia…" he whispered.

"Took you long enough to get here," the demon repeated.  "I was thinking the devil had taken care of you, and I wouldn't get to have my fun.  You very nearly disappointed me again, Spike."  She was floating about four feet in the air, her legs and arms casually crossed.  As she spoke she looked at her nails and flicked a piece of dirt out from under her thumbnail.

"Why you…" Faye seethed, resisting the urge to grab hold of Julia's tail and swing her into a wall.

"Wait, Faye," Spike said, holding up a still-bandaged hand.  "Don't do anything.  It's not Julia, I know it's not."

Julia laughed.  "Shows me how much you cared, Spike.  You don't even recognize your own girlfriend.  You'll pay for all those times you left me in the dust!" she screeched.

"Damn, what a drama queen," Faye snorted.  She raised her voice so Julia could hear her.  "You lay a finger on him and I'll shove your head so far up your ass, you'll never see the light of day again!"

The demon raised a skeptical eyebrow, lifted a finger, and easily sent Faye flying into the door to the Other Realm.  She yelped in pain as her skin stuck to the unholy metal.

Spike watched, unable to move, unable to speak.  His mind was racing, confused about which of these two women he should help.  Should he allow Julia to do what she would with Faye, since Julia had been the love of his life for so long, or should he do whatever was necessary to protect his new love, Faye?  As Julia threw Hellfire at Faye, Spike simply contemplated which of these paths to take, stricken completely dumb.

Faye screamed.  "Spike, when are you going to stop standing there like a goddamn deer in headlights and get your ass over here and help me???" she yelled at him, jerking him out of his trance.  "This isn't the real Julia!  I wouldn't be sensing the Devil if it was!"

_Oh, duh!  _Spike thought stupidly, hitting himself on the forehead.  _Of course it's not Julia!  I knew it!  He put on a sardonic grin and assumed a fighting stance.  "Bring it on, Julia," he was about to say.  Then he stopped.  What if it __was Julia, only possessed?  Then he would only be fighting his love in a different form._

Faye stared at him.  "What the hell are you DOING, Spike?!" she screamed.  "Help me!!"

He lowered his fists and shook his head.  "I can't…" he whispered.  "I can't do it…"  He turned and began to walk away from the scene, trying once more to escape his past.

Julia stared after him, wondering why he didn't fight her.  Her face contorted into an angry, menacing glare as she watched him walk away from her…again.  She threw herself at him, ripping and tearing at his flesh with her demonic claws and vampiric teeth.

Spike screamed, feeling his skin rip as she seemingly ate him alive.

"Spike, you have to fight back!" Faye yelled, tears streaming down her face.  "I won't be able to bear it if you die again!"

Knowing he had to save his own…well…afterlife, Spike reluctantly began to fight back.  He kicked her in the stomach, causing her to double over and fall back a bit.  He staggered to his feet and regained his balance, then fell to his knees again.

_God…if you can hear me…HELP ME…she's killing me again,_ Spike prayed, for the first time in his life.  _I can't let Faye be alone again…_

Spike felt his body lift itself up as a strange sensation filled his entirety.  He felt his head lift up to gaze at a sky that held no stars, and he sighed.  Suddenly, he winced as a sharp pain whipped through his back.  Glancing behind his shoulder, he was startled and a bit scared to find wings sprouting from his shoulder blades.  Feeling something heavy grow in his hands, he looked front and down to see an elaborate sword materialize in his grip.  The inscription on the blade read "In God You Trusted," and for some strange reason it gave Spike the incentive he needed to go up against Julia.  He grinned and said those words he had held back before.  "Bring it on, Julia."

Julia stared at him in wonderment and shock, which was soon replaced by that old fury she seemed to hold dear now.  She flew at him, screeching horribly.

He didn't even have to think about it.  Almost as a reflex, he held the point of the sword out towards her, causing her to impale herself on the dreadfully sharp blade.  She screamed: one long, last, miserable scream.  Spike's fleeting feeling of triumph quickly vanished as the realization of what he had just done hit him like a slap in the face.

"Julia!" he screamed, feeling his heart jump out of his body and skewer itself on the same sword that had just run her through.  He yanked the sword out of her, and watched in horror as she fell to the ground, eyes staring and vacant, body twitching slightly.  The wings and the claws disappeared, leaving a sad, helpless young woman lying near-dead on the floor of Heaven.

He threw the weapon down and floated down to where she lay.  Taking her in his arms, he prayed that his tears would mend her wound.  "Julia…" he whispered.  "I'm so sorry…What the hell have I done…?" 

Her eyes focused for a moment.  "Spike…" she tried to say, but ended up in a fit of coughing.  Spike wiped the blood that shone on her lips with his shirt.  "I'm sorry…This was all my fault…"

"No.  No it wasn't…You were jealous, I understand that…"  Spike hugged her tightly.

"I guess…I guess now you can be with Faye…" Julia said softly, a single tear rolling down the side of her face to join the multitude of Spike's tears on the ground.

"No, don't say that…It's not like that…"

Faye, who had been released once Julia had returned to normal, walked cautiously over to where the couple was.  Tears filled even stonehearted Faye's eyes as she watched this broken man hold his broken woman at the end of their broken relationship.

A shadowy figure materialized near them.  Spike reckoned this must have been the creature that children had gotten their stories of the Grim Reaper from.

"It is her time," the figure said.  "She must enter the Other Realm."

"NO!" Spike screamed, holding Julia even tighter to him.  "I won't let her go again!"

"You have no choice.  The Realm is hungry for her soul, and will not be satisfied until it receives it.  There are consequences for those who resist."

"Spike…" Julia whispered.  "I love you…"

"I love you, too, Julia…" Spike sobbed, hugging her and rocking back and forth as the life left her.

Her eyes went dead, and her body rose, answering the beckoning call of the Other Realm.  The Door swung open.

"NO!" Faye yelled, and she rushed to close it.

"Get close to that door and you enter the Realm!" the Grim Reaper shouted.  "You cannot approach the Door while life still clings to you!"

"The Other Realm only wants a soul, doesn't it?!" Faye screamed.  "Let it take my soul instead!"

Spike stared at Faye.  No, he couldn't live without her either…

"That is correct, my child, but it would be foolish to sacrifice your life for one who has experienced the powers of Hell."

"I don't care!"  She rushed at the Door, trying to beat Julia.

"FAYE!!!  NO!!!" Spike screamed.  He rushed forward and shoved her backwards.  The impact caused him to fall backwards, and through the Door.  "I love you, Faye!" he shouted one last time as his soul was taken by the Rippers of the Other Realm."

"SPIKE!!!" the now very alive Julia and heartbroken Faye cried out in unison.  They rushed to the Door to try and save him, but it swung shut, and the Grim Reaper disappeared.

"He made his choice…Now you must make yours…" the apparition's voice echoed after him.

Faye and Julia collapsed, sobbing.  What was this for?  Why did Spike have to go?  They gazed at each other, a friendship forming through this similar loss.

Clinging to each other, they cried as they had only just been born, and in the distance, the lonely cry of a single wolf, the pet of God, sounded along the brilliant horizon.

A/N: OK it sounded a lot better in my head, and I'm going to try and update the next chapter faster than I updated this chapter.  Thanks for all your support everyone!


	8. Epilogue: The Aftermath

A/N: SO sorry for the delay in updating!  Hm….Haven't been on the computer with inspiration lately.  *bows* Gomennasai!

**_Epilogue: The Aftermath_**

Faye stood up and wiped the tears from her face, though the stream didn't stop.  She turned her face toward the sky and shouted, "WHY DID IT HAVE TO BE HIM?  IT WASN'T HIS TIME TO GO!!!"  She shut her eyes tight, clenched her fists, and stared back down at the ground, whispering, "It wasn't his time…"

Julia remained stricken on the ground, now soundlessly mourning.  Salty tears flowed freely from her eyes; she did nothing to wipe them away.  Instead, she simply got up and began walking back towards the border between Heaven and Hell.

Faye, hearing footsteps, whipped around. "WHERE DO YOU THINK YOU'RE GOING?" she shouted at the retreating figure.

"I'm going home…" Julia whispered, her voice quivering.  "This is no place for me, now…"

As Faye was about to scream at Julia to turn around and face her, their surroundings materialized.  Julia looked up, confused and bewildered.  In place of a desolate stretch of desert land, they found themselves in a room.  The floors were made of brilliant bronze tile, the ceilings decorated ornately with paintings of angels and cupids.  Standing against the walls were bronze statues of the prophets and the Apostles, and there, sitting in an elaborate golden chair, sat…

"St. Peter??" Julia asked incredulously.  "The one who…"

"Yes, yes, yes, I'm the one who gave Spike directions to you," Peter said hastily.  "Now, we have some business to take care of."  He looked down his spectacles at her.  "You are his former partner, correct?"

"Partner?"

"Girlfriend.  Lover.  Mate.  Paramour.  Significant oth—"

"Yes, yes, of course.  That's me," Julia said.  "Why?"

He raised his eyebrows.  "Well you can't expect me to just let you into Heaven with no background, correct?  I mean, I do need to find out a LITTLE about the person Spike Spiegel sacrificed his soul for."

"I-into Heaven?  What do you mean?" Faye asked curiously.  "She's been sent to Hell already."

Peter gave an exasperated sigh.  With an air of someone who has had to explain the same thing for the hundredth time, he pulled out a scroll and began to read.  "Any person or persons thought worthy of sacrifice by one of God's Chosen (namely, the people whom God chose to allow into Heaven) may be allowed to take up residence in Heaven in exchange for the soul of the Chosen in question."

"Huh?" asked Faye and Julia together.

Peter rolled his eyes.  "If someone in Heaven sacrifices his soul for you, then you can come to Heaven."

"Oh," said Faye.  She looked at him.  "Why didn't you just say that instead of babbling gobbledy-gook about residence and Chosen and stuff?"

Ignoring this, the saint focused on Julia and continued.  "Therefore, by law, you are allowed to enter Heaven because Spike sacrificed himself for you."  He looked at her, a softened expression in his eyes.  "I think that's what he would have wanted, too…"  He paused for a moment, remembering Spike's visit to him, being the only person ever to have the audacity to call him "Pete".

Julia stared at him.  "I-I'm allowed into Heaven now?  Is that what you were saying?"

Peter blinked.  "That was the general idea, yes."  He shrugged.  "Unless you would _prefer_…"

"Oh, no!!!  Absolutely not!" Julia interrupted.  She laughed.  "Wow!  That's great!  Thank you, sir!"  She turned to Faye, excited.  "I get to go to Heaven, Faye!  I get to stay in Heaven!"

Faye rolled her eyes. "Oh, joy…" she said sardonically.

The blonde woman's expression turned icy, as both of the women refused to consent to the fact that they had both just formed an unspoken agreement of friendship through Spike's death.  She turned back to Peter.  "Is there anywhere I can stay?"

Peter looked at her.  "This is Heaven, dear.  You can go stay wherever you'd like.  God knows we have enough room."  His eyes traveled back and forth between the two women.  "Why don't you two stop acting like a couple of elementary-school students and get over yourselves?  You could both use a roommate now, and you're not seeming to see that there's one standing right in front of you."

"But she—" both of them sputtered, but were silenced as Peter held up a hand.

"Don't tell me about it.  Sort out your differences on your own time, and don't waste mine with them.  If anything, go see the High Counselor Himself.  But I'm no advice-giver.  Not my department.  However, I will tell you this: it would be better if you both would swallow whatever pride you are clinging to, get rid of the sticks up your butt, and just move in together.  A not-so-little birdy told me that there will be a lot you two will find in common, and you'll find better friends within each other than you've ever known before."

They simply stared at him, then looked at each other, turned around, and stalked out of the room, shoving each other on the way out.

Peter shook his head and returned to his paperwork…

_____________________________________________

Several weeks went by, and Julia and Faye, having decided to follow Peter's advice and move in together, were still bickering like a cat and a dog over every little thing.

"If you hadn't left, Spike wouldn't have come after you, and none of us would be dead!"

"Well, if YOU hadn't decided to try and make him cheat on me, he wouldn't be REdead!"

"You still think you two were TOGETHER?  Honey, we were all DEAD, for one thing, and for another, YOU WERE GONE FOR WHO KNOWS HOW LONG!!!"

"STILL!!!  UGH I hate you, Faye Valentine!"

"The feeling is MUTUAL!!!"

"I WISH SPIKE WERE BACK!!!"

"NOT AS MUCH AS I WISH YOU WERE GONE!"

 At that moment, a knock sounded at the door, and they both rushed to it and opened it to find a very scared-looking man with messy blonde hair and a white robe on.  "Um…am I interrupting something?" he asked, a worried look on his face.

"No, no, no, not at all," Faye replied, grinning.  "We were just sorting out some…er…differences."

"I see…" said the man, looking rather uncomfortable.  "Well, anyway, I'm here with a letter from St. Peter.  It seems there was a loophole in the law of the Realm of Havenless Souls that permits you two to bring the man who sacrificed himself for you back."

The two women looked at each other, blinked, and suddenly started bombarding him with questions.

"How?"

"When did you find this out?"

"Do we have to work together?"

"Does it involve another sacrifice?  Because she's more than willing to!"

He held up his hands defensively, looking even more flustered than before.  "I don't know the details!  But here's the letter."  He reached into a small bag at his side and drew out a silky scroll, which the two women promptly dove for.

_To whom it may concern:_

_It has come to my attention that a certain soul by the name of Spike Spiegel has been cast into the Realm of Havenless Souls.  I have been unable to get in contact with you, as I have been occupied with many people dying and such.  Anyway, I discovered a way that you may be able to bring his soul back, free of charge.  You both must travel to the other side of Hell and confront Narthus, the Ruler of the Realm of Havenless Souls, but you must do it as a team.  If there is any dissension between you, he will see it immediately and has every right to deny you your request.  So not only must you travel together, you must learn to overcome your differences and gain perfect harmony with one another.  I realize that this will not be an easy task for you, but you must either do that or Spike remains lost to you.  If you need assistance, send word back with Mike here.  He's an angel-in-training._

_                                                                                                                                    Sincerely,  
                                                                                                                                                      __St._ Peter__

Faye and Julia stared at each other, ignoring the angel on their doorstep, a look of utter consternation on their faces.  After about ten minutes of silence, they bid Mike goodbye, telling him that if anything went wrong, they would alert Peter, and went back into the house.

A/N: I'm not sure if I should make a sequel.  This is the end of this story, but I'm going to wait and see what the public opinion is before I start the sequel.  Might kill the original story, but I want to satisfy all the Julia-haters/Spike-lovers. :P


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